Definition of 'breach'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense breaches
, present participle breaching
, past tense, past participle breached
1. verb
If you breach an agreement, a law, or a promise, you break it.
2. variable noun
A breach of an agreement, a law, or a promise is an act of breaking it.
3. countable noun
A breach in a relationship is a serious disagreement which often results in the relationship ending.
[formal]
4. verb
If someone or something breaches a barrier, they make an opening in it, usually leaving it weakened or destroyed.
[formal] The limestone is sufficiently fissured for tree roots to have breached the roof of
the cave. [VERB noun]
5. verb
If you breach someone's security or their defences, you manage to get through and attack an area that is heavily guarded and protected.
The bomber had breached security by hurling his dynamite from a roof overlooking
the building. [VERB noun]
6.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
breach in British English
noun
2.
a breaking, infringement, or violation of a promise, obligation, etc
4.
5.
the act of a whale in breaking clear of the water
6.
the breaking of sea waves on a shore or rock
7. an obsolete word for wound1
verb
9. (transitive)
to break a promise, law, etc
10. (intransitive)
(of a whale) to break clear of the water
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
Old English bræc; influenced by Old French brèche, from Old High German brecha, from brechan to breakWord Frequency
breach in American English
noun
1. Obsolete
a breaking or being broken
2.
3.
an opening made by a breakthrough, as in a wall, line of defense, etc.
4.
a broken or torn place or part
5.
a breaking of waves over or upon a ship, sea wall, etc.
6.
a whale's leap clear of the water
7.
a break in friendly relations
verb transitive
8.
to make a breach in; break open or through
verb intransitive
10.
to leap clear of the water
said of a whale Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
ME breche < OE bryce < brecan (see break); infl. by OFr breche < OHG brecha, of same orig.
Word Frequency
breach in American English
(britʃ)
noun
1.
the act or a result of breaking; break or rupture
4.
a severance of friendly relations
5.
the leap of a whale above the surface of the water
transitive verb
8.
to make a breach or opening in
9.
to break or act contrary to (a law, promise, etc.)
intransitive verb
SYNONYMS 1. fracture. 2. breach, infraction, violation, transgression all denote in some way the breaking of a rule or law or the upsetting of a normal
and desired state. breach is used infrequently in reference to laws or rules, more often in connection with
desirable conditions or states of affairs: a breach of the peace, of good manners, of courtesy. infraction most often refers to clearly formulated rules or laws: an infraction of the criminal code, of university regulations, of a labor contract. violation, a stronger term than either of the preceding two, often suggests intentional, even
forceful or aggressive, refusal to obey the law or to respect the rights of others:
repeated violations of parking regulations; a human rights violation. transgression, with its root sense of “a stepping across (of a boundary of some sort),” applies
to any behavior that exceeds the limits imposed by a law, especially a moral law,
a commandment, or an order; it often implies sinful behavior: a serious transgression of social customs, of God's commandments. 3. crack, rent, opening. 4. alienation, split, rift, schism, separation; dissension.10. (of a whale)
to leap partly or completely out of the water, head first, and land on the back or belly with a resounding splash
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
breacher noun
Examples of 'breach' in a sentence
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In other languages
breach
British English: breach
VERB /briːtʃ/
If you breach an agreement, a law, or a promise, you break it.
The newspaper breached the code of conduct on privacy.
- American English: breach /ˈbritʃ/
- Brazilian Portuguese: abrir brecha em
- Chinese: 违反
- European Spanish: quebrantar
- French: ne pas respecter
- German: verletzen
- Italian: violare
- Japanese: 違反する
- Korean: 어기다
- European Portuguese: quebrar
- Latin American Spanish: quebrantar
- Thai: ละเมิด
British English: breach
NOUN /briːtʃ/
A breach of an agreement, a law, or a promise is an act of breaking it.
The man was accused of a breach of secrecy rules.
- American English: breach /ˈbritʃ/
- Brazilian Portuguese: brecha
- Chinese: 违反
- European Spanish: brecha
- French: infraction
- German: Bruch
- Italian: violazione
- Japanese: 違反
- Korean: 어기다
- European Portuguese: quebra
- Latin American Spanish: brecha
- Thai: การละเมิด
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Definition of breach from the Collins English Dictionary
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